The SupplyChainBrain Podcast

It's been about a year since the Securities and Exchange Commission began imposing its rule on the disclosure of conflict materials from the Democratic Republic of Congo in manufactured products. Are companies up to speed? Mandated by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010, the rule applies to tin, tantalum, tungsten and gold sourced from mines in the DRC that a...

Procurement fraud is costing global companies billions of dollars a year. So why can't they put a stop to it? The problem takes many forms: bribes, kickbacks, collusive bidding, conflicts of interest, exclusion of qualified bidders and the falsification of invoices, to name a few. The cost to companies hasn't been fully quantified, but there's no doubt that it's huge. In one re...

Will we ever cut off the flow of contaminated product from China and other offshore manufacturing sites? The recent revelations surrounding Lumber Liquidators, which faces criminal charges for the alleged presence of the carcinogen formaldehyde in flooring made in China, are only the latest example of serious slip-ups in manufacturing quality control. It's tough enough to police one's ov...

The battle against cybercrime rages on. And global supply chains remain highly vulnerable. It should come as no surprise that the globalization of supply chains, resulting in the addition of many new trade and service partners, has made companies more susceptible to breaches of their information-security systems. Often they come in unexpected places, such as the HVAC contractor that was reportedly...

Creating an ethical supply chain is clearly the right thing to do. But it can also help companies to cut costs and boost profits. ''Beyond Supply Chains'' is the name of a new report from the World Economic Forum, produced in collaboration with Accenture. It was intended to address the growing pressure on companies to ensure that their supply chains are having a positive social...

We're still waiting for many of the emerging markets of Latin America to emerge. What’s holding them back? Four big obstacles, according to a new report from Transport Intelligence on ''Latin American Transport Logistics 2015.'' For all its promise as a thriving center of manufacturing and logistics, supporting both domestic and international markets, the region continues...

The way in which buyers pay their suppliers hasn't kept up with the times. The result: an unacceptable level of global supply-chain risk. Big companies today are demanding that their customers pay quickly and on time. Yet when it comes to paying their suppliers, it's a different story. Buying organizations are stretching out terms, to the point where a supplier might not get compensated...

All global companies will tell you that they're committed to guaranteeing human rights throughout their supply chains. But how do we tell they're sincere? When it comes to corporate social responsibility, human rights is on a par with environmental protection. Both have something in common: Companies agree that they're important, but it can be tough to assess whether their position...

Can we ever really know the Unknown? Or are we doomed to be forever surprised by economic, political and diplomatic upheavals? History suggests the latter. We never seem to have a grip on events that appear obvious in retrospect. Still, global business planners need to understand what might happen in crucial markets. It's a constant struggle to reach an impossible goal, but there are certain...

The imposition by UPS and FedEx of dimensional weight pricing on all ground shipments is bound to raise the price of moving parcels and packages. But there are ways that shippers can mitigate the increase. Up to now, dimensional weight pricing has been applied by the two big parcel carriers to air and express moves, as well as to packages greater than three cubic feet in size. As of the beginning...

Who better to assess the most serious risks confronting global business today than one of the world's largest insurance companies? Each year, a few weeks before the World Economic Forum conference in Davos, Switzerland, Zurich Insurance Group co-produces a report on global risk. The 2015 edition marks the tenth year of the report, which began by merely identifying risks, but now analyzes the...

Are the doors open to women looking to pursue a career in logistics? The answer is a qualified yes. Without question, the field of logistics has shed much of the sexism that marked it over the years. Changes in the business, driven by globalization, technology, the internet and a widening talent gap, have resulted in new opportunities for all prospective entrants, male and female. Still, it's...

With the current boom in U.S. oil and natural gas production, it might be tempting to put aside the notion of shifting to more sustainable fuels for commercial transport. Why venture into this unknown area when traditional supplies are so plentiful? The answer: the current state of affairs can't last. Now is the time to begin exploring which kinds of alternative fuels have the greatest potent...

Apple is known for consistently maintaining a smooth-running global supply chain. But every once in a while, something blows up. That's what happened in the relationship between Apple Inc. and GT Advanced Technologies, which was contracted to supply sapphire for the new iPhone 6 screens. The deal carried enormous promise, not least because it involved manufacturing in the U.S. But it quickly...

Is it feasible to scan every one of the 15 million containers that enter U.S. ports each year? With a new technology, the long-term answer might well be yes. Decision Sciences International Corp. has developed the Multi-Mode Passive Detection System, a new means of scanning containers at the port for radiological, nuclear and explosive materials, as well as contraband. The technology differs from...

What does it take to overcome the logistics challenges of serving customers in emerging markets? The short answer: a lot. Emerging markets present manufacturers, distributors and retailers with numerous pitfalls that can break a supply chain. Some of the most important considerations are laid out in a recent paper from PwC, ''Overcoming Network Logistics Complexities in Emerging Markets....

What will the typical factory look like five years from now? Manufacturers today are undergoing a major evolution in their global sourcing strategies. No longer is it sufficient to build product in a single country that offers the benefits of low-cost labor, then distribute worldwide. At the same time, manufacturers are laboring to juggle the need for optimal plant efficiency with buyers' dem...

Global trade: Love it or hate it. But don't overestimate its impact on individual economies. Proponents of trade point to the benefits of global ''connectedness,'' while opponents damn that very thing. Asked about the actual impact of trade on domestic jobs and products, however, people tend to wildly overestimate the figures. What's more, a continuing study of trade&...

A new year, and with it a new slew of regulations and stepped-up enforcement of international trade law. Brace yourself. On this episode, we welcome back international trade attorney Peter A. Quinter, practice group chair with GrayRobinson, P.A. Formerly legal counsel at U.S. Customs' Office of the Chief Counsel of the United States in Miami, he's a seasoned expert in global trade law. A...

A company's reputation rests on much more than the quality of the products that it makes. Reputation can make or break a global business. And, in the age of social media, it has become a more critical element of corporate health than ever before. But maintaining a good reputation requires that companies continually monitor every aspect of their supply chains. On this episode, we hear from Vik...

Retailers are scrambling to offer free shipping for online orders. Is it a money-losing proposition? E-tailing has become so competitive that many online sellers today consider it essential to provide free shipping on many, if not all, of their shipments. At the same time, they are speeding up delivery to the point where customers have come to expect a one- to two-day turnaround on orders. How can...

Is China guilty, as charged by U.S. traders, of keeping its currency artificially weak? Despite some movement upward in recent months, the value of the yuan has remained relatively low against the dollar for some time now. And the Chinese have reaped the benefits, in the form of cheaper prices for their exports. American trading interests have repeatedly called on the Obama Administration (and Bus...

Call it the dark side of international commerce: fakes, frauds and thought thieves. Time to take action. On a global scale, companies are losing an estimated $657bn each year due to product counterfeiting and intellectual property (IP) infringement. And, with the explosion of trade over the past few years, the problem is becoming even more widespread. Previously, companies had only to worry about...

Electronic waste is threatening to overwhelm our landfills. Despite the popularity of global recycling programs, we're a long way from solving the problem of what to do with the waste from discarded business and consumer electronic devices. As much as 85 percent of electronic products were discarded in landfills or incinerators last year. And the release of the iPhone 6 has brought the issue...

Are cryptocurrencies like bitcoin gaining legitimacy in the retail and services sector? And what impact might they have on the supply chain? Bitcoin is an online, peer-to-peer payment system that sidesteps traditional currencies. The virtual instrument has had a rocky existence since it was invented in 2008 by the mysterious ''Satoshi Nakamoto''. Among its setbacks was the U.S....